Pretty excited that today when I moved a couple of fabric bags that had been left outside I startled a small dark coloured skink. [No photo.] Hooray for wildlife!
Joined a new group today: The Waipū Cove Walking Group. No joining fees, no committee, just a bunch of people who meet at the same time same place each week to go for a 1 hour walk, then socialise (if they feel like it) in the cafe across the road.
So friendly and welcoming! Such a brilliant idea.
Note to self:
New Zealand one of just a handful of countries to see upcoming partial solar eclipse:
Monday, 22 September [2025], a rare partial solar eclipse should be visible (weather permitting) in the early hours across the country.
Kiwis, or folks who know NZ Birds, give Birdle NZ a try. 🐦
Birdle 🇳🇿 15/09/2025
🟩🟩⬜🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
https://birdle.nz
Voting for Bird of the Year closes on 28 September 2025.
A light in the blackout
Among my papers is the (English) Eastern Evening News from 26 June 1940.
Right up there at the top are the blackout times for that day: 9.49 pm to 4.17 am. So precise!
I've kept the paper though for an item on the back page which refers to my father.
SOLDIERS USE RIFLE
AS "DETECTOR"How Black-Out Offender Was Traced
£20 FINE AT YARMOUTH
The story of how a lighting offender was discovered by soldiers, who aimed a rifle at the window to find its direction, was told to Yarmouth magistrates to-day, when Thaddeus Walter Ryan, of White House, Arnott Avenue, Gorleston, was summoned for displaying a light on June 10th. He admitted the offence in a letter.
The chairman (Mr. J. Fisher) said that the magistrates considered the offence very serious. They were determined to stop lights being shown, more especially on the front, and in future cases defendants would be fined very severely.
Ryan was fined £20 and 5s. costs.
Private Leonard Douglas Jordan said that he and his companions laid aim on the window with a rifle and rifle rest, and as soon as it was daylight they found where the light was coming from. The light was on for at least an hour.
Police-sergeant H. Wright said the police had received complaints from the military. There was a covering over the window, but it was of light cloth, and the house was in a very exposed place.
Claude tells me the fine today, 85 years later, would have been about £1,500.
I was sorting through a folder of old papers, hoping to dump some. Now I know why I kept the City Voice from 04 July 1996.
In the 1990s and 2000s I did a lot of work introducing people to the Internet, teaching how to use it.
Soon after that I bought my own domain name.
The murders continue in Malvern, but Jude Gray notices the things the murderer wants to keep hidden and provides invaluable clues for the detectives. A Very Merry Murder by Kate Wells. 📚
a beloved national TV show is coming to film their Christmas special on [Jude's] land, celebrating the charm of rural living.
At least, that’s the plan… until one of the crew is found dead in suspicious circumstances.
We can see this tree topped hill from our dining room window. It's just across the river and slightly north of us.
Aerial views show it's the site of a water reservoir and pine plantation, and a cell tower.
Historical records (PDF) say it's a Pā site.
Survey office plan SO 40 (1854-1865) shows the 14807 acre Ruakākā Block and shows a number of features of interest including the location of pa site Q07/94 named Pitorehu
The 8 or so padlocks on the chain round the gate made it very clear you can't get in for a look.
At the gym in Levin I used weights in multiples of 5 kilos. At the gym in Ruakākā weights are in multiples of pounds so I'm updating my routines to weird amounts. [NZ adopted the metric system 50 years ago now.]
For example, my chest press set included reps at 6.8 Kg, 13.6 Kg and 20.5 Kg. Sigh.
Today I plugged "Marsden Point" into the car's GPS. 7 minutes later we pulled into a public carpark, surrounded on all sides by the industrial area around the commercial port for Whangārei.
Across the channel (looking more or less into the sun) is Mount Manaia.
We're completely prepared for today's power outage … which is apparently next week. 🤦🏽♀️
Hanging out in downtown Whangarei on a sunny day. It’s so beautiful here.
With this being nearly 3 weeks away, I bet the tsunami siren test on 28 September will still take us by surprise. The nearest siren is only about 650 metres away.
Hah!
109 years ago, the Van Buren sisters completed a 5,500-mile solo ride in motorcycles across the United States in a bid to prove that women could serve as military dispatchers. …
During the ride, they were arrested numerous times, not for speeding but for wearing men’s clothes.
Today's visitor, moments after it started to rain heavily. 🐦
I want to thank Microblogger Patrick Taillon for putting me on to this 2 hour long video — LISTERS: A Glimpse Into Extreme Birdwatching which I watched over several sessions. 🐦
Partly documentary, partly mockumentary, it was a great look into the birds of North America and the folks who dedicate themselves to seeing / hearing them and adding them to personal lists.
I laughed a lot.
Two brothers learn about competitive birdwatching by becoming birdwatchers—spending a year living in a used minivan, traveling the country to compete in a ‘Big Year'.
A very satisfying story with pleasing characters and a delightful location. Killer in the New Forest (The DI Callum MacLean mysteries Book 3) by Carol Cole. 📚
Detective Inspector Callum MacLean should be unpacking boxes in his new home. But when a man is run over and killed outside Godshill Village Hall, his week’s leave is cut short. …
The post-mortem reveals Stafford was already dead before the car wheels struck him.
Another good read in this series, though rather gruesome. A Murderous Mind (Naomi Blake Mysteries Book 11) by Jane Adams. 📚
When the mutilated body of a student is found in her university room, the scene is horrific.
This 45 minute Howtown debate put forward really interesting points. It is a useful contribution to the public discussion. Can we really blame social media? A research showdown.:
we dive into the academic controversy … which argues that social media apps on smartphones are a major driver of declining mental-health outcomes among young people. The trends show rising anxiety, depression, and self-harm among teenagers …. But does the evidence really show that social media is the problem?
The Ruakākā Rec Centre gym didn't really work for us so we signed up with Ruakaka | Z 24 Hour Fitness.
They have fabulous machines by Inotec which are really smooth and easy to use.
Unfortunately I was too enthusiastic in trying out the hip adductor — my inner thigh muscles are rather sore today.